


What Might Have Been

by onechicagogurl



Category: Chicago Fire
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-03
Updated: 2020-09-03
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:41:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,874
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26272027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/onechicagogurl/pseuds/onechicagogurl
Summary: I love the show Chicago Fire. I mean LOVE. It's hard to put into words what each character has come to mean to me over the last eight years. I'm not a shipper so please no ship wars. I love the characters more than any one ship and this is my small attempt to give Gabriela Dawson and Peter Mills a happy ending.
Relationships: Gabriela Dawson/Peter Mills
Comments: 8
Kudos: 7





	What Might Have Been

Peter Mills finished the last take out order for his sister Elise to deliver and looked around at the deserted restaurant. Four months ago it would of been full of people grabbing lunch before heading back to work, but now the small coastal city they lived in had turned into a ghost town.

His family restaurant was barely surviving the pandemic and quite honestly he didn't give a damn. His life had never turned out the way he had planned so why should 2020 be any different.

Peter settled himself at one of the booths and pulled out his iPhone. He smiled as he turned it on and saw his screensaver. A random shot of him, Capp and Tony in the back of the squad rig. He went into his photos and pulled up more pics. Cruz and Otis sharing a laugh over who knows what. Herrmann looking irritated at something. Casey and Severide having one of their cigar chats. God how he missed those guys.

It had been a little over five years since he had left Chicago. A decision he regretted almost immediately. No wait. Regret wasn't the right word. He had almost always done what his mother wanted and this restaurant was a chance for his family to make a fresh start. But truth be told his mother and sister had never truly grasped what that job meant to him and how much he longed for those days back.

His three years at firehouse 51 were like a dream. He'd busted his ass to make squad and when that was taken away from him he worked even harder as the PIC. When he was able to get back on squad he jumped at the chance and was devastated when it wasn't permanent, but in hindsight he'd realized what he missed most were his days on ambo 61 with Brett. He'd even kept his EMT certification up and occasionally volunteered at the local firehouse, but it wasn't the same. 

Peter closed his photos and went into his news app. It was just as awful as it was the last time he checked. No surprise. Today the big story was out of Puerto Rico. As the country continued to rebuild following Hurricane Maria in 2017, it was now facing the triple threat of drought, earthquakes, and covid 19. Peter took a quick breath as he recognized the woman being interviewed. Gabriela Dawson.

At least once a week Brett fired off an email to him about the goings on at firehouse 51, so he was aware of Gabby and Casey's divorce and that Gabby had become an aid worker. What he didn't expect was the tiny flip of his stomach seeing Gabby on his screen and hearing her passionately ask for more volunteers and federal funding. Seven years after their split and he was still in love with her.

Peter shut his phone off and gazed out at the ocean. The images of Puerto Rico and Gabby's words ran through his head. He was not one to believe in signs, but for a long time now he had felt like he was drifting in life. Not really making a difference in anyone's lives. Was this the answer.

Peter picked his phone back up and looked through his contacts. He still had the CFDs number. He called and asked to speak to Chief Hatcher. Within minutes he was signed up for the next group of relief workers to head to the island in two weeks. 

"What did you just do?"

Peter looked up to see Elise looking at him with a mixture of anger and horror. Of course she had heard every word. 

"What does it sound like? I'm going to spend six weeks helping people in need instead of sitting around feeling sorry for myself."

"You can't do that to mom."

"And what about me, Elise. What about what I want. It's for six weeks. Not forever. I'll be back being the good son before you know it."

Elise was not expecting his outburst, but he was in no mood to apologize. They quietly closed up the restaurant and went home. At dinner that night Peter's mother surprised him by giving her blessing for his new adventure.

"Peter, I know you're not happy here. If this brings you some peace than I have to be okay with that. All I ask is you be safe."

Before Peter knew it he was in Puerto Rico. Gloved and masked and being taken to the person in charge. As he walked into the camp his heart skipped a beat when he saw Gabby standing off by herself yelling in Spanish over a walkie talkie. Was it wrong how much he missed her fiery temper. 

Gabby finished her conversation and headed over to the new recruits. If Peter was not mistaken her eyes lit up when she recognized him, but then seemed to cloud over with sadness. He felt the need to break the tension.

"I told you once if things didn't work out you could always look me up. You didn't so here I am." 

At that Gabby started to laugh. "God, Peter. Out of all the gin joints, right? Here let me show you around."

Six weeks passed quickly and Peter extended his stay. He and Gabby had fallen into an easy routine of working side by side, and in the evenings they often shared a bottle of tequila and talked about the day's work. The only time things turned awkward is if the subject of firehouse 51 came up. Gabby seemed determined to not talk about the past. Peter told himself he didn't mind, but he could tell something was troubling her and one night in early September he got up the courage to ask her.

"What happened between you and Casey?"

Gabby grabbed the bottle of tequila and took a swallow. She then looked down at her hands and said, "I happened."

"I don't understand."

"I had it all, Peter. A husband who loved me with everything he had. A man who would literally walk through fire for me. A job I loved. Friends I would do anything for. Molly's. I threw it all away. Do you know I didn't even say goodbye? I just walked away."

"Gabby, you're going to have to give me more to go on. I'll ask again, what happened?"

"I've always been my own worst enemy, Peter. I thought you of all people would know that. I make things harder for myself. I push people away when they try to help me. I've disappointed a lot of people and broken a few hearts along the way. But I never meant to hurt Casey. It just got too hard being me."

"Gabby...." Peter trailed off. He wished he could take back the question. The pain in Gabby's eyes was too intense. She took a long swallow of tequila and then continued as though he hadn't interrupted.

"I thought Shay's death was the worst thing that would ever happen to me. But God had other plans. And man, the curveballs He threw at Matt and me were doozies. I guess after a while we just stopped dodging them. We let the cracks grow bigger and the distance between us widen. We're both to blame I guess. Healthy conversations were never our strong suit. But then we got the biggest of all curveballs thrown at us and that was that. Casey and I could no longer pretend everything was okay. Chief Hatcher had asked me to consider doing aid work for six weeks and I took it. And then I extended my leave. And extended it again. And then I made it permanent."

Peter moved closer to Gabby and put his arms around her. She turned and buried her head in his shoulders. He could hear her softly crying. Peter was at a loss for words, but felt like he had to say something.

"Did you really walk away without saying goodbye?"

Gabby straightened up and dried her eyes. "Yeah. When I returned home for the rest of my things I left a note for Sylvie, but that was it. I sent my shares of Molly's to Herrmann by FedEx. Same with my divorce papers. I didn't talk to Casey for a year. Not until I was in Chicago for the gala last November. Everyone welcomed me back with open arms like not a day had passed and there were no hard feelings. But they had to be pissed. I would be if a friend treated me that way."

"I think you underestimate your friends. If it was as bad as you say it was they probably understood why you had to get away."

"Maybe," Gabby replied, but seemed doubtful.

"What was the gala for?" Peter asked. 

"A fundraiser for the agency. But it was really an excuse for me to see Matt. I had to know if he was okay. Plus I wanted to pay my respects to Otis."

"And was Casey okay?"

"I think so. We both realized we were on different paths. Not that we didn't have fun that night, but it's over. Hopefully one day all we'll remember of our life together are the good times and be able to close the book on the bad."

Peter didn't really know what to say to that. He wanted to kiss her, but wondered if she was truly over Casey. He'd been down that road before and he knew how it ended. Gabby seemed to sense his confusion and gently touched his cheek with her hand.

"I'm glad you came to Puerto Rico, Peter. Even with Antonio here it gets lonely. These past three months working with you have been amazing. Makes me miss the old days."

"That's good to know because I've been hired as a full time aid worker. There's too much work to be done and not enough hands to do it."

Gabby smiled and pulled Peter into a kiss. Peter was surprised, but didn't pull back. Was it possible Gabby could still have feelings for him? Gabby broke the mood with a laugh.

"I could always read you like a book, young Peter Mills. I don't know what is happening here, but I like it. Let's just take it day by day and see where it takes us."

Peter thought about that for a moment. If he didn't believe in signs he certainly didn't believe in fate, but what if this was the road they were meant to be on. It may have taken the destructive forces of a hurricane and a pandemic to get them to this moment, but what if Gabby was the one all along.

"Okay," Peter grinned. "Let's do it."

And they had. His mother hadn't been pleased by his decision to stay, but her mood lightened considerably when she learned that he was back with Gabby. Maybe she had only ever wanted him to be happy. And he was. Within months he and Gabby were talking about marriage and fostering a group of children left orphaned by the plight of Puerto Rico. He may not know where his future lay, but he knew who would be by his side.

The end


End file.
